It’s about time you started listening to me.

Shut up -

Kamila stood on the city walls, watching the lake and the mountains beyond. At the lakeside, dancers wheeled and cavorted, as slow yet happy music drifted from the center of the lake. The air was warm – even with the distance from the lake Kamila could feel it. The warmth, however, was alien to her – it was somebody else’s warmth. She tried to feel happy for them.

There was Hilda, in the crowd – and Lucian. They were dancing. Together. Kamila’s fingers curled. Her nails bit hard into her palms, and drew blood.

She couldn’t join the dancers at the lake, she knew that. They were occupied in their joy – they didn’t need somebody like her to bring them down. She could never be one of the dancers at the lake. Besides, she had work to do.

Kamila climbed down from the city walls and made for her apartment. There was much to learn from those messages the Adma had intercepted, those descriptions they’d drawn up. Kamila wasn’t about to allow the hard work of a comrade-in-arms to go to waste.